{They questioned among themselves} (sunz(8874)ein autous). By
look and word. {A new teaching} (didach(8820)kain(885c)). One surprise
had followed another this day. The teaching was fresh (kain(885c)),
original as the dew of the morning on the blossoms just blown.
That was a novelty in that synagogue where only staid and stilted
rabbinical rules had been heretofore droned out. This new
teaching charmed the people, but soon will be rated as heresy by
the rabbis. And it was with authority (kat' exousian). It is
not certain whether the phrase is to be taken with "new
teaching," "It's new teaching with authority behind it," as
Moffatt has it, or with the verb; "with authority commandeth even
the unclean spirits" (kai tois pneumasin tois akathartois
epitassei). The position is equivocal and may be due to the fact
that "Mark gives the incoherent and excited remarks of the crowd
in this natural form" (Swete). But the most astonishing thing of
all is that the demons "obey him" (hupakouousin aut(9369)). The
people were accustomed to the use of magical formulae by the
Jewish exorcists ( Mt 12:27  Ac 19:13 ), but here was something
utterly different. Simon Magus could not understand how Simon
Peter could do his miracles without some secret trick and even
offered to buy it ( Ac 8:19 ).